Page 6 of A Taste of Bliss

“The one that tried to eat you,” Evan supplies from behind me, as if anyone could forget me feeding off them.

I look over my shoulder at him. “Thanks,” I deadpan.

He smirks at me. “Welcome.”

“Would you two do this later?” Benny chides, stepping into the cell. I didn’t even notice him unlock it. He leans against the bars, turning his attention to Austin. “Do you remember when or where you were turned? And by who?”

Austin looks between Evan and I for a second. He nods. “I don’t remember when or where exactly. Time kinda stopped making any sense.”

“That’s fairly normal,” Benny says, nodding as well.

“But I know who turned me. It was a vampire named Stretcher.”

“Stretcher?” Evan asks. “What the fuck kinda name is Stretcher?”

Austin shrugs. “He’s a friend of a friend. I don’t think that’s his real name, but he’s in a band and they all have these weird stage names.”

Benny looks out of the cell at Evan and I, grinning. “Fucking weird.”

I can’t help but smile back. All four of us have our own stage names.

Though none as bad as Stretcher.

“Why’d he turn you?” Shaun asks from the doorway. I shuffle over to make room for him to stand outside the cell with us, forcing Evan to also take a step back. He shoots a glare my way, half-heartedly elbowing me in the chest, hitting my right nipple piercing. I rub at the sensitive bud and I show him my canines again.

“Would you two stop fucking around?” Shaun barks, then pins Austin with his stormy blue eyes.

Austin seems to curl into himself on the cot. “We uhh—we hooked up a couple of times. Just after shows and stuff. It wasn’t anything serious, well, at least I thought, but then he started showing up everywhere.”

“Seems like his stage name should be Stalker,” Evan huffs out.

“At one point he showed up where I work, and he was saying all this crazy stuff about wanting to be together forever.” Austin breaks out into a sob. “Why did he do this to me?”

Benny lowers himself onto the cot beside Austin, comforting him. “It’s not uncommon for vampires to get like that. Possessive. Obsessed.”

“You seem normal,” I say, trying to offer the newer vampire hope.

Benny nods. “Inner work is pretty helpful.”

Austin leans into Benny, his sobs only getting louder. Benny exchanges a look with Shaun and the wolf shifter herds us out of the room. “I think only Benny being in there for now will be good. Austin needs to see what he can become if he puts in the work.”

I nod, exhaling through my nose. “I wanted to apologize to him, but I guess it can wait.”

“It’s not like you were doing anything he wasn’t doing,” Shaun says, shrugging.

“It still wasn’t right.”

“No, it wasn’t,” Evan cuts in before Shaun can. “You lost control. If he’d been human, you would have killed him.” Evan glares at me, and I know he’s thinking I should have this handled by now. He turns away from me and heads back up the stairs, leaving Shaun and I standing there.

Shaun takes a few steps up the stairs and turns, looking down at me. “Pisces, you’re doing good. Evan’s never been through what you have. He doesn’t understand what you’re battling. I’ll talk to him.”

“Don’t.” I shake my head. “I need him to be hard on me.”

“Are you calling Benny and I soft?” Shaun asks, a rare smile coming to his face.

I grin. “Yes, that’s exactly how I’d describe you both,” I say, a genuine laugh bubbling out of my throat. “Nah, Evan just gets under my skin sometimes.”

“He’d say the same thing about you.”